1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to the containment of liquids and objects, including floral items.
2. Background of the Invention
The purchaser of a floral bouquet meets with difficulty in transporting the bouquet from the point of purchase, such as a supermarket or florist, to its final destination, such as the purchaser's home or business. If the purchaser doe not wish to keep the floral bouquet in water, a sleeve may be used to house the bouquet. If the purchaser desires to keep the floral bouquet in water, the purchaser has to either use a plastic or glass vase in order to contain the floral products. These items are either a separate cost or a significant expense that is incorporated into the cost of the floral product.
The current, temporary vase options are visually unappealing and are relatively expensive to manufacturer. Moreover, glass and plastic vases require significant expense and effort to be shipped and storage at the point of purchase. Finally, these vases are usually thrown away shortly after the floral product arrives at its final destination. This routine disposal adds a cumulatively significant amount of trash to our landfills.
Disposable alternatives are typically cumbersome, fail to provide for the containment of water in a manner that provides both durability and simplicity, and typically do not provide for a method of practically containing both liquid and the floral products. Attempts to address the problems have been inadequate.
For example, U.S. Pat. No. 6,665,982 provides a floral bouquet bag, but fails to provide a method of conveniently containing liquid and requires a separate water container. Moreover, the bag must be assembled prior to use. U.S. Pat. No. 6,227,439 and U.S. Pat. No. 6,170,739 provide for a flexible container for liquid but fail to provide for a method of securing the floral product in the bag and require assembly prior to use.
Other patents and disclosures have disclosed methods that also fail to provide for a method to secure the floral product and conveniently contain the liquid in the container and typically require extensive assembly at the point of sale prior to use. As a result, a need exists to provide a securing method that will provide for the containment of liquid and objects for a temporary period. Therefore, a need exists to provide an alternative capable of containing liquid and objects such as floral products that are more efficient to manufacture, ship, store, use, and dispose.